Coastal Dreaming

Its been a little too long with no updates on the blog. Its definitely not a shortage of material - mostly a shortage of time these days. I wanted to point out a nice simple rating structure I read about recently in International Living. I have referenced their material before, but unfortunately they only share it via an email newsletter with no online reference, so I cannot give true credit to the author (Dan Prescher) and a link to the source.

Dan came up with a simple rating scheme to rate a potential location for living and working. Its called the 4C’s. Its not rocket science, but then again its not meant to be. For those of you looking to assess regions for yourself or for clients or even as an investment exercise, I think it would be useful.

Comfort: This might include cleanliness, insects, pollution, climate, noise etc. I think there is a reason why this is C #1. It has a large impact on like-ability but there is little to nothing you can do to change it.

Convenience: This means different things to different people but in Central America this often relates to infrastructure, and how close you are to things such as an airport, the road conditions, utilities such as phone and power, food items, or hardware. Also you will want to think about medical care in this as well.

Convenience requirements vary widely for different individuals and being down there I saw some very creative solutions to convenience problems. For example - a satellite uplink attached to a palm tree that allowed a beach front resort to take email reservations and make calls using Skype. As an investor, think about your target market and what convenience means to them.

Cost: Again - very much in the eye of the beholder, but it is usually compared against what you are used to at home. Most importantly how do the real estate prices compare? What will it cost you to eat and drink? How much will it cost for medical care?

Culture: Some people care more or less about local culture. Some would rather bend it to them or blend in with the locals. However most people like to have some local culture, whether it be food, music, entertainment, sports/hobbies history etc. It gives them a feeling of being in an exotic location or minimally something different than they are used to. Again, as an investor, think about your target market, and identify these items accordingly. They can be very helpful in marketing.

The author suggests that you rate on a scale of 1-5 and never rate the country - only a city or region of the country, which I completely agree with. Even small countries have regional differences and local flavor.

Whether you are looking to live or invest, it might be good to use the 4C’s as a due diligence exercise when exploring new areas.

Tags: 4C's, Coastal Dreams, International Living, rating system